Wherever you’re traveling, it’s always good to be aware of hotel best practices to keep you and your family safe. While other risks often come to mind in regards to travel, it’s important to remember the potential dangers of pests like bed bugs that can completely disrupt your vacation.
The last thing you want is to arrive home from your work trip realizing you exposed you and your family to a bed bug infestation. Here’s some information about the risks of bringing bed bugs home from a hotel, how to spot them, and how to hopefully prevent them from harming you or your loved ones.
How Likely Is It to Bring Bed Bugs Home From a Hotel
Unfortunately, hotels are one of the more commonplace locations where you could encounter bed bugs.
This may not necessarily have to do with the cleanliness of a hotel, but rather the fact that hotel rooms are a revolving door of foot traffic.
Rather than just trusting a hotel room is safe, it’s better to do a thorough bed bug check on your own when you first arrive in a hotel room.
To complete a bed bug inspection – You should undergo the following steps:
- When first entering the hotel room, you should put your luggage on a rack rather than directly on the floor by the bed.
- Go over to the bed, pull back the bed sheets, and check the mattress and box spring.
- Take a look at any upholstered furniture in the room, whether it be a couch or a recliner.
- When you get home, if you have any concerns that bed bugs hitchhiked home with you, immediately wash all of your clothes and dry on high heat. Avoid bringing the luggage into your house until it is inspected thoroughly.
How Do You Know If You Brought Bed Bugs Home From a Hotel
If you happen to carry bed bugs home with you from a hotel stay, it won’t take too long for them to make themselves known.
Within a few weeks, you may notice bites on your skin or your family members, including pets.
You may start to see small dark spots on your sheets or fabric furniture, an indicator of bed bug droppings.
Of course, if you see a group of small, brown bugs crawling on your carpet or mattress, that’s a surefire sign that something may have hitched a ride on you or inside your luggage.
How Do You Prevent Bed Bugs from Spreading After Traveling
When you get home from your next trip, the best bed bug prevention method is to immediately clean everything that went with you into the hotel room while you were gone.
It’s tempting to let your suitcase sit there for a day or two while you settle back in at home, but any luggage along with its contents must be washed to prevent these pests from multiplying and growing into a severe infestation.
You should also change the clothes that you were wearing during your journey home. It’s a good idea to also take a long hot shower.
What Do You Do If You Get Bed Bugs From a Hotel
If you were unlucky enough to come across bed bugs in your home after traveling, you should contact your local pest control service immediately. It is generally recommended to use a professional pest control company to ensure that all bed bugs are exterminated during treatment.
You should also call the hotel to report the presence of bed bugs. Tell them the room number that you stayed in and the dates that you were there.
Lastly, if you are looking for representation for your bed bug damages, you should consider getting in touch with our team of bed bug injury lawyers who may be able to help with your potential bed bug case. You should take pictures as evidence of the infestation with a timestamp because most cases require this type of support.
In addition, save any medical records or expenses you incurred due to hospitalization or damaged property from the bed bug infestation. This documentation could be important evidence in the pursuit of financial compensation for the damages you experienced.
